Refueling tankers to arrive later than planned at McConnell

Officials have given approval for a rebuilt vintage bomber to be ground tested on a military runway in Kansas.

McConnell Air Force Base officials say the new Boeing KC-46A refueling tankers will arrive at the base in Wichita later than expected.

The first of the new tankers, which will replace the aging KC-135 tanker, will not arrive until the spring of 2017. They originally had been expected to begin arriving early this year, which was then postponed until August.

The Wichita Eagle reports (http://bit.ly/1Ree2rP) the delay is being attributed to production delays by Boeing. The KC-46 tankers are the military version of Boeing’s 767 airliner.

Rep. Mike Pompeo of Kansas said in an email that the Air Force has assured him that the first 18 KC-46s will be delivered to McConnell by August 2017.